Blindsided
by Monkums
Summary: The William McKinley High School prom unknowingly sets in motion a series of events and revelations, affecting the live of two very different girls. Some of the best things in life come out of nowhere and blindside you. Rachel/Quinn  Faberry  femslash
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This story begins immediately after the prom episode so there are potential spoilers for anything up to that point. I will be adding in flashbacks here and there from previous episodes, all of which will be noted in italics. For the flashbacks, I tried to get the dialog as close as possible to the show but I've filled in some of the mannerisms that were viewed on screen but not apparent in the dialog. I also added a few touches of my own to the flashbacks to make them relevant to the story I'm telling. For now, this story is told in Quinn's POV. Don't worry about the Quinn/Finn start. This story will end up being Faberry through and through! Anyway, this author's note is getting too long so let's get on with the story!

Disclaimer: This really should go without saying but alas, I am not fortunate enough to own Glee or any of the characters involved. No copyright infringement is intended.

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><p>_-**-_-**-_<br>Chapter 1  
>_-**-_-**-_<p>

Prom was an utter disaster. Not only had her date been thrown out for fighting, about Rachel Berry, of all people, but she had also lost out on the title of prom queen. It was inconceivable. Quinn had been positive the title would be hers as long as she had Finn on her arm. Sure, maybe the boy wasn't playing with a full deck, but could be sweet with that dopey half smile of his and he was at the top of the popularity chart. It should have been an easy win but nothing went as she had planned. The only thing she could take comfort in was that this was just their junior prom. She still had another year and another shot at getting that crown.

After the party, Quinn didn't stick around to socialize with the rest of the glee club members. She was distraught over the evening's events and was in no mood to deal with other people's crap on top of her own. She saw Santana blubbering earlier to Brittany and so did not want to even touch that with a ten foot pole.

She was met with a cool breeze when she pushed open the red double doors, making her escape. The slight chill caused her to wrap her shawl tighter around her shoulders. Quinn stopped for a moment and glanced up at the night sky. The previously viewable stars were now hidden behind clouds, threatening to open up and release their contents at any moment. Perfect. Even the weather outside seemed to have taken a turn for the worse.

Bringing her eyes back down to earth, the blonde looked across the parking lot and, to her dismay, saw Finn sitting in his pickup truck. What the hell is he still doing here? She groaned when she remembered that he had driven her here. Great. That meant that he was also her ride home since there was no way she was walking the five miles to her house in her brand new heels. Finn looked defeated, leaning forward against the steering wheel with his arms draped over it and his chin resting atop. However, he perked up at the sight of Quinn making her way across the parking lot and quickly hopped out of the truck.

"Quinn, I'm –" he began, but she raised her hand to signal for him to stop and he immediately snapped his mouth shut. She was pissed as hell and didn't want to have to listen to his lame ass excuses or apologies at the moment.

She walked around to the passenger side of the truck and climbed in. He scrambled to follow her direction and hopped in behind the steering wheel. "Drive me home," she demanded. He hesitated for a second before she gave him an icy stare and added, "Now." He swallowed hard and turned away from her to start the ignition. Quinn inwardly smirked at the scared look on his face. He didn't have the balls to argue with her when she whipped out the HBIC attitude.

It was an awkwardly silent ride back to the Fabray residence and she was glad that Finn was at least smart enough to not try and talk to her again. It began to rain outside; the pelting of the raindrops on the metal body of the truck were the only sounds in the cab. Quinn pensively watched the raindrops join together and trickled down her window. If only the evening had gone as smoothly as the water flowing down the glass.

Luckily it was a short drive and a few minutes later, Finn pulled his truck into the Fabray's driveway. He made a move to turn off the ignition, probably hoping to have a conversation, or at least beg for her forgiveness, but Quinn was up and out the door before he could even begin. She slammed the pickup door shut and rushed up to the porch, trying to avoid getting soaked by the rain. After fumbling with her keys on the doorstep for a minute, she heard the truck back down the driveway and slipped inside the house as quietly as possible. Hopefully her mother wasn't waiting up for her. The last thing she wanted was the third degree about her evening. She could already picture the look of disappointment on her mother's face when she told her about losing out on her shot at prom queen.

Glancing around the dark house, it seemed the coast was clear. Letting out a breath she hadn't even realized she was holding, Quinn slipped off her heels and softly padded up the stairs to her bedroom. As soon as the door latched behind her, the tears began to fall. She knew she was being overly dramatic and sure, maybe she shouldn't have been so nasty to Finn but she had wanted this so badly. Months of planning had gone to waste.

Quinn unzipped her dress and stepped out of it. She immediately put it on a hanger and stowed it away in her closet, tossing her heels in as well. Just looking at that dress made her feel even worse. She threw on a Cheerios tank and shorts and made her way into the bathroom to clean off her makeup. Quinn let out a bitter laugh when she viewed her reflection in the mirror. She really was the definition of a "hot mess" right now. Her eyes were puffy and tears has caused mascara to run down her cheeks, yet her hair still managed to somehow be perfectly coiffed. She pulled out the pins holding her hair up, allowing it to fall down haphazardly around her face to match the rest of her appearance.

After cleaning her face and brushing her teeth, Quinn wandered back into her bedroom and unceremoniously flopped down on her bed. She mindlessly rifled through the magazines lying atop the comforter. Finding nothing of interest to read, she gave them an annoying shove off the bed, leaned back onto her pillows with a sigh and stretched out on her back. The clock on the nightstand next to her read 11:05pm but she was nowhere near tired enough to fall asleep, even after her tearful breakdown. She needed a distraction or at least something to numb her senses enough to force her to sleep.

Jumping up off the bed, she quietly opened her door and crept downstairs into the kitchen. Her mother always had some kind of alcohol in the house and Quinn decided that was exactly what she needed right now. She was met with success when she came across a bottle of Merlot on the otherwise empty wine rack. She doubted her mother would even notice it was missing; she would probably think she drank it herself. Bottle and wine glass in hand, she made her way back up to the bedroom. This time she locked the door behind her. The blonde had every intention of finishing that bottle and definitely did not want her mother coming in the next morning and seeing the bottle or glass. Recalling the night's events to her would be bad enough without a lecture on teenage drinking on top of it. She poured herself a glass of wine and grabbed the TV remote off her nightstand. Flipping it on, she started surfing channels until everything became a blur.

One bottle of wine and two hours later, Quinn was on the verge of passing out. Her limited experience with alcohol caused her to be somewhat of a lightweight. Both the bottle and glass were discarded on the floor next to bed. Her limbs felt heavy and her mind cloudy. The alcohol coursing through her body felt good. She fumbled around for the remote and successfully managed to hit the power button on the third try. Now cloaked in darkness, she rolled onto her back and stared up toward the ceiling for a few moments and closed her eyes. Right as sleep was about to take her, something flashed in her mind. On the edge of consciousness, the last image in Quinn's mind was that of Rachel Berry.

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><p>"<em>You can't tell me what to do anymore, ok?" snapped Rachel. "If I want to date Jesse, or anyone else for that matter, it stopped being your business when you broke up with me."<em>

"_I still care about you," Finn pleaded._

_Rachel sighed and tightened her grip on the books she was holding against her chest. "Look, all I ask it that whoever I choose, that you be as supportive of me as I have of you and Quinn even though I'm dying every day inside about it." She turned away and walked toward her locker, straining to keep tears from welling up in her eyes._

_Finn followed her with his shoulders slumped forward. "You know, I don't even want to go to this stupid prom anymore," he grumbled. "Quinn's got me handing out pens with our names on them... where's the dignity? And I hate renting those tuxes. And the corsage... I know I'm gonna pick the wrong one and then Quinn is gonna be all pissed off –"_

_Before he could finish, Rachel interrupted him. "Hey, just... just get her something simple. A wrist corsage. Girls like Quinn, you don't want to do anything that's going to distract from their face, so ask for a gardenia with a light green ribbon around it to match her eyes. Ok?" She gave him a small, sad smile before she closed her locker door and walked away. Finn watched her leave, looking a little stunned that Rachel gave him advice on what to get Quinn. After a minute, he walked off as well._

_Throughout the whole exchange, neither Finn nor Rachel noticed Quinn leaning against the cream colored lockers across the hall, taking in every word they said. The blonde was annoyed with Finn about his comments on prom and especially for even talking to Rachel in the first place. Rachel had stolen Finn out from under her once and she'd be damned if she let it happen again. But the comment about the corsage? What the hell was that about?_

_The bell for the next period brought Quinn out of her thoughts. She'd have to think about it later. Right now she needed to get to English class._

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><p>Sunlight crept through the window, illuminating the golden locks splayed across the pillow. Quinn was wrapped up in her comforter except for one bare foot sticking out and hanging over the side the bed. Stirring awake, she brought up an arm to trying and shield her face from the sunlight. She rolled over to look at the clock but her movement was halted by a dull throbbing pain in her head. Wincing, she lightly massaged her temples to try and help ease the pain a bit. What was going on? Quinn wiped the sleep from her eyes and slowly sat up. Finally taking a look at the clock on the nightstand, she saw it read 10:27am. The blonde then lowered her eyes to the floor and saw the discarded wine bottle and glass next to the bed. Ugh. Now she remembered. Prom. Finn. Wine. Rachel.<p>

With a heavy sigh she got up from the bed and started her morning routine. First item on the list was to grab a couple aspirin from the medicine cabinet in her bathroom. Her hangover was a raging bitch and she knew she wouldn't be able to face her mother's disappointment without a little help. In fact, she was surprised her mother hadn't knocked on her door yet. Maybe she figured Quinn would need some extra sleep after a late night and decided to let her rest. After downing two aspirin and several glasses of water, the blonde turned on the shower, stripped her clothes off and hopped in. The hot water running over her body was soothing. Her muscles were knotted with tension from last night's event at the school and subsequent self-induced drunken stupor. It seemed like hours had passed before she finally turned of the water and grabbed the towel hanging over the shower door. Quinn dried off and wrapped the towel around her body before heading back into the bedroom to dress. She grabbed a pair of sweats and a Cheerios t-shirt from the dresser and put them on. With a quick comb of her hair, she surveyed her self in the mirror. She looked like hell but at this point she didn't really give a shit. After last night she just wanted to crawl in a hole and die. Unfortunately, that wasn't an option so she put on her best face and steeled herself to head downstairs and face her mother.

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><p>Author's Note (again): I've got a rough plan for this story mapped out but I'll be posting as I write it so I can't promise daily updates. This is only my second multi-chapter fic and my first for Glee. I apologize in advance for the short chapters. Try as I might, I can't seem to get them more than 2,000 words (not including the lengthy author's notes, lol). Please take a few minutes to review. I'd like to know what you think about the pace, wording, characterization, etc. Constructive criticism is much appreciated! :)<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Ok, so I'm a total liar. I had no intention of updating this quickly but I'm doing laundry today and am bored as hell. I figured I might as well get this stuff out of my head and on paper in an attempt to alleviate my boredom so you guys get an extra treat of two chapters in one day! :)

This story has already gotten over 200 hits but only a couple of reviews so please, if you take the time to read this story please take an additional minute or two to review. I'm not going to beg for reviews or threaten to quit writing if I don't get them but they really do help inspire me to keep going. I'm an relatively insecure writer and need assurance that I'm doing a good job, lol. Wasn't it Rachel who said, "I'm like Tinkerbell! I need applause to live!" :D

Oh, also, text messages are in bold, flashbacks are in italics. The disclaimer from chapter one still stands. Enjoy!

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><p>_-**-_-**-_<br>Chapter 2  
>_-**-_-**-_<p>

Quinn quietly padded downstairs. She could see her mother sitting in the kitchen reading the newspaper. Before she made her presence known, she took a moment to study the older blonde. When her mother had asked her to move back into the house after the baby was born, Quinn was more than a little skeptical that things would be different, even without her father's oppressive presence. Things weren't perfect between them. It would take years to undo all the damage that had been done to their mother-daughter relationship, but she could see that her mother was really trying. All Quinn had ever wanted was to be loved unconditionally by her parents – something she had never experienced. Looking at her mother right now, she gave a small smile and hoped that things would continue down this new path. She was brought out of her thoughts when her mother noticed her standing outside the doorway and beckoned for her to come in. Well, here goes nothing.

"Hey, Mom," said Quinn as she took a seat at the table across from her mother.

"Quinnie!" Judy exclaimed. Quinn inwardly winced at the nickname. She hated when her family called her that. "I didn't even hear you come in last night! So, tell me all about the prom!" Judy's face was alight with excitement. Quinn felt terrible that she'd have to disappoint her.

"Um, well it was an experience, that's for sure," the younger blonde replied.

"How was the coronation ceremony?" she asked. "I know when I got my crown, it felt like the wind was knocked out of me; I was so excited I could hardly breathe! It was a little difficult to get the crown on because my hair was –"

Quinn cut her off before she could continue. "The coronation ceremony was nice... but I wasn't in it."

"What do you mean you weren't in it? The prom queen is always part of the coronation ceremony," she stated plainly.

"I wasn't part of the ceremony because I wasn't chosen as prom queen. I lost." Quinn slumped her shoulders forward and bowed her head, bracing herself for a speech on how disappointed her mother was. This would just be one more item to add to the long list of ways she had failed her parents.

Judy had a blank expression on her face for a moment before she reached across the table and covered her daughter's hand with her own. "Oh honey, I'm so sorry you didn't get it. I know how hard you worked on your campaign."

Quinn's jaw dropped a little at that statement. That was so not what she had expected to hear. "Wait, you mean you aren't disappointed in me for losing?" she asked incredulously. "I mean, Frannie was prom queen, you were prom queen, your mother was prom queen..." she trailed off. "I thought you'd be mad at me."

Judy gave Quinn's hand a small squeeze. "I'm not mad at you or disappointed, sweetheart," she said. "You tried your best and that's all I can ask for." With that statement, Quinn began to break down. She sniffled and tears started to run down her cheeks. "Quinnie, what's wrong?"

"I just... That wasn't the response I was expecting," she said quietly. "I let you down. I thought you were going to lecture me on how I have yet again managed to disgrace the family name."

Judy's heart broke at the sight of her daughter looking so defeated. She took a breath before she said, "I can understand why you would think that. I haven't always been supportive of you in the past but I'm trying to change that. Your father always pushed you and Frannie to fit his image of perfection and I stood by, allowing it happen." Judy now looked as if she was about to burst into tears. "I should have been there for you but I wasn't. I should have stood up to your father but I didn't. I was afraid to do those things," she admitted. "I can't change what's happened in the past but I'm trying to make sure the future doesn't turn out the same way. I lost you once sweetheart and I couldn't stand for it to happen again."

The floodgates had officially been opened and now Quinn was full on sobbing. The younger blonde usually didn't allow herself to cry in front of others but she just couldn't seem to hold back the tears. She stood up from her chair and moved to hug her mother. Judy opened her arms and held her daughter tight. "Prom queen or not, you're still my daughter and I love you. You are not a disappointment, ok?" She gave Quinn one last squeeze before she pulled back and Quinn gave her a tearful nod. "If I should be disappointed in anyone, it should be myself. It shouldn't have taken your father having an affair for me to open my eyes and see that this family was broken," she said quietly.

Quinn wiped the remaining tears from her eyes and left her mother's embrace, returning to her chair on the other other side of the table. This was the mother she had needed all along. Someone to comfort her when she was upset, reassure her when she was doubtful and be understanding when she needed it the most. She gave a small laugh and said, "Well, it shouldn't have taken me getting pregnant and being kicked out to bring us together but honestly, I'm glad it happened," she said with no hint of malice in her voice. "I wouldn't necessarily want to go through that experience again but it got Dad out of the house and now neither of us have to be afraid anymore." Quinn held her mother's gaze for a moment and they both smiled. Her mother broke the silence.

"So," she started. "Tell me all about the prom."

After an hour of chatting with her mother, she finally managed to escape back upstairs to her bedroom. The conversation had drained her emotionally but she was glad for it. Once the black cloud that was her father disappeared from over the Fabray household, everything started to brighten. Who would have thought her mother could change so much? The blonde was still in shock from her mother's reaction. It still hurt to know she didn't win the title of prom queen but the fact that her mother was understanding and supportive lessened the pain.

A buzzing sound across the room startled Quinn. Her clutch from last night had been hastily discarded on the desk and she had completely forgotten about her phone. It was just as well, really. She hadn't been in the mood to talk to anyone anyway. She grabbed the phone and looked at the screen. There were four voice mails, all from Finn, and six text messages: three from Finn, one from Santana and surprisingly, one from Rachel. Actually, it was under the name "Manhands" in her phone but whatever. She didn't even realize Rachel had her number.

She listened through Finn's voice mail messages. They were nothing but apologies and promises to make it up to her and blah, blah, blah. The blonde quickly deleted them and moved on to the text messages. Finn's texts were essentially the same as his voice mails so they were quickly deleted as well. Santana wanted to get together today and commiserate about their shared loss of prom queen. Quinn couldn't help but laugh when she read her text.

**Boys suck. My house tonight. Bring ice cream. -S**

Only a day ago Santana was threatening to take her down for the title and today she was asking to hang out and play nice again. Theirs was an odd relationship but Quinn wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. Despite their rough patches and disagreements, she could always count on Santana to have her back when it mattered the most. It was touch-and-go at times, especially when Quinn told Coach Sylvester about Santana's "summer surgery." They barely spoke to each other for weeks, other than to hurl insults back and forth. Well, actually Santana did most of the insulting. She has a gift for it.

Moving on to the final text, she hesitated upon opening it. Quinn hadn't forgotten about their confrontation last night and she would bet any amount of money that Rachel hadn't either. The blonde figured this was the perfect opportunity for Rachel to get her digs in about losing out to Kurt. If the tables were turned, Quinn certainly would have wasted no time in sending such a message. She pressed the button to open the message and read.

**I didn't see you leave last night so I hope everything is ok. I'm sorry you didn't win the title – you deserved it. Also, if you would prefer to keep our conversation in the bathroom between the two of us, I completely understand and will honor your request. Take care. -Rachel**

Leave it to Rachel to write a freaking novel for a text message. Despite herself, she couldn't help but smile when she read that Rachel thought she deserved to win. Why would she say something like that? Quinn didn't really leave her any reason to be nice to her. In fact, she's been downright horrible to her since freshman year. The blonde could count on one hand the number of times Rachel had actually retaliated against her for a snarky comment or action. For the most part, the petite brunette took everything in stride and was amazingly forgiving. Quinn thought back to the conversation they had last night.

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><p><em>After hearing Karofsky named as prom king and Kurt named as prom queen, Quinn couldn't stand it anymore. The gymnasium was suffocating. She had to get out of there. As soon as she stepped off stage, she rushed toward the girl's bathroom.<em>

_Another girl was in the bathroom but quickly exited when she saw Quinn enter. The blonde didn't even realize Rachel was at her heels until she spoke._

"_Quinn, you need to calm down," Rachel said quietly._

_Quinn spun around, seething with anger. "This is all your fault! Nobody would have ever voted for me because they know he'd rather be with you!"_

_Rachel looked flustered and countered with, "That's not true!" Before she could even formulate another sentence, Quinn had reared her arm back and brought it forward to slap Rachel soundly across the left side of her face, the noise echoing off the walls._

_The blonde's chest was heaving. She was breathing heavily and looked slightly shocked at her own actions. The force of the slap caused Rachel's head to whip to the right. She turned back to face her attacker with both hands grasping the left side of her face. Her previously immaculate hair was mussed and she had an expression on her face like someone told her Barbara Streisand had just died._

_Quinn's expression quickly softened to one of regret. "I'm so sorry," she breathed, but it came out as more of a whisper._

_The silence following her apology was deafening. After a heated gaze between the two for a few moments, both girls turned to the mirrors to check their hair and makeup._

_Rachel gingerly inspected her stinging cheek in the mirror, ghosting her fingers over the offended area. "Most girls would be upset about being slapped in the face, but I happen to appreciate the drama of it," she stated. Quinn did her best to not roll her eyes._

_Quinn watched as the brunette walked over to the paper towel dispenser, grabbed a paper towel and walked back to the sink to moisten it._

_"I know you think it's hard to be you, Rachel, but at least you don't have to be terrified all the time," Quinn said, her voice trembling._

_Rachel looked at Quinn with a confused expression. "What are you so scared of?" she asked and offered the damp paper towel to Quinn. The blonde reached out to grab it from Rachel's hand and in doing so, accidentally brushed her fingers across the back of the brunette's hand. The touch gave her a curious sensation. Rachel pulled back a bit when Quinn's hand touched her own. Quinn figured she probably thought that she was going to hit her again._

_"The future," Quinn replied. She motioned to her face. "When all of this is gone." The blonde dabbed her eyes with the proffered paper towel. She hated this. She hated getting upset and hated even more that she was getting upset in front of Rachel. Rachel "Stubbles-RuPaul-Manhands" Berry. Of all the people to be crying alone in the bathroom with..._

"_Look, you've nothing to be scared of. You're a very pretty girl Quinn. The prettiest girl I've ever met," she admitted shyly. Quinn did a double-take. Was that a blush creeping across the brunette's face? Rachel's chocolate colored eyes drifted downward for a second before she raised them to meet Quinn's hazel ones. "But you're a lot more than that," she finished._

_Quinn gave her a small smile, followed by a sniffle before she turned away from the intensity of Rachel's gaze. The blonde grasped the white ceramic sink and hung her head. She blinked away the tears that threatened to fall again._

_Rachel broke the silence. "Here," she said as she reached out her hand to take the paper towel back from Quinn's hand. "Can I help?" she offered. Quinn could only nod and allowed Rachel to help finish drying her tears, an awkward silence hanging in the air._

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><p>The conversation seemed even more awkward thinking about it the second time around. After everything, the name calling, the slushies, the rude comments, the nasty nicknames, and especially the slap... Rachel still managed to put their differences aside and reach out to comfort her. Why? It reminded Quinn of the moment outside the choir room when the brunette had followed her, having revealed the truth about her baby's father. Even then Rachel tried to comfort her. Though she would never admit it to anyone, Quinn often wondered what it would be like if she had accepted the brunette's offer of friendship.<p>

Bringing her thoughts back to the present, Quinn felt like she at least owed Rachel an apology for last night. She had apologized for the slap immediately after it happened but the more she thought about it, the more Quinn realized she had so much more to apologize for. So much, in fact, she felt a lifetime's worth of apologies wouldn't be enough to make up for the past two years of torture she put the brunette through. Tears pricked the corners of her hazel eyes yet again. Damn, what was with all this emotional crap lately? It was like some invisible force was pressuring her to rethink everything. First it was this morning with her mother, and then now with Rachel. Maybe it was some sort of karma.

She squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath. Whatever it was, it was too much. She had to get out of here and work off some of this energy. In a flash, she was out of her sweats, changed into a pair of shorts and running shoes and threw her hair up into a messy bun. She sped down the stairs, yelling to her mom she was going for a run, and shut the door behind her. The blonde did a couple of quick stretches, put in her earbuds, and shuffled through her iPod until she reached her running mix. Quinn simultaneously hit the play button and took off down the street, hoping to leave her emotions behind her. At least for now.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: So, here's chapter 3. I'm kinda surprised I cranked it out so quickly but I was having trouble sleeping because I kept thinking about scenes to write for this chapter. This chapter is also slightly longer than usual for me. Yay! No flashbacks in this chapter and we're still looking from Quinn's POV. This may be my last update until after Memorial Day. I'm going out of town for a long weekend and am already stressed about the trip so I might not have time to get anything up before I leave.

The disclaimer from chapter one still applies.

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><p>_-**-_-**-_<br>Chapter 3  
>_-**-_-**-_<p>

Quinn could barely hear the sound of her footsteps as her feet pounded the pavement. The music on her iPod was turned up high in an attempt to simultaneously drown out the world around her and distract her from her thoughts. After one rushed mile, she settled into a steady pace. The blonde decided to take a different route than usual for her run today. A change of scenery was necessary to keep her distracted. There was a bike trail that started at a park near her house. She hadn't had a chance to explore it before and now was as good a time as ever.

The afternoon sun was bright shining down upon her, causing the light to glisten off the sweat forming on her brow. The slight burning sensation in her muscles felt good. She needed this.

Up ahead, she noticed the bike trail was coming to an end. Quinn had been so focused on her run, she failed to realize just how far she'd gone. If she was coming to the trail's end, she was halfway across Lima by now, at least a good six miles or so from her house. Glancing at her watch to check the time, she figured she should start making her way back home. It was almost three o'clock now and the fact that she had missed both breakfast and lunch was starting to catch up with her.

She broke away from the end of the path and turned the corner to start down the next street. Keeping with her desire for a change of scenery, the blonde decided to return through town instead of doubling back and taking the trail again. This street looked familiar to her for some reason even though she didn't usually come to this part of town. The houses were all similar in design, many with neatly manicured lawns and the cliché white picket fences. It took a few moments before Quinn realized why this neighborhood looked familiar. She had driven here for a party once. A party at Rachel Berry's house. Crap.

She let out a laugh at the irony of the situation. Here she was, going out of her way to avoid anything having to do with the memory of last night and by some stupid, invisible force, she was practically on the doorstep of the one person she wanted most to forget about. Her feet brought her here without any conscious thought. This only served to reinforce her previous thought that some sort of karma must be at work. If it was indeed karma playing a part, it was a real bitch. As she neared the end of the street, she saw none other than Rachel Berry standing behind her car in her driveway. Freakin' perfect.

The petite brunette popped the trunk open on her car and bent over to rummage around inside, looking for who knows what. Quinn slowed her stride and took a moment to drink in her appearance. Rachel was wearing what looked to be a set of workout clothes. She had on a tiny pair of pink shorts and a tight fitting white tank top. The blonde didn't think it was possible for anything to be shorter than the skirts the brunette wore to school but those shorts were practically indecent. Did the girl have no sense of propriety? At least it was better than the animal sweaters and penny loafers she wore to school. Rachel looked almost normal in that outfit. One could even say she was attractive, showing off smooth, tan legs that were impossibly long for someone so short. Quinn faltered a bit at that thought. Why were Rachel's legs the only vision in her mind at the moment? Ugh! Must. Stop. Thinking. Again.

Quinn figured she had two options here. One would be to run by the Berry house without another thought and head home. The other option would be to stop and say hi. Instinct told her to choose option number one. If she stopped to talk with Rachel, she probably wouldn't get home until dark with the way she rambles on. However, once again, some damnable unseen force was silently prodding her to choose option number two. She could stop and be polite, chat for a few minutes and thank Rachel for her concerned text message last night. As much as she hated to admit it, she did find it sweet that even after her poor behavior toward Rachel at prom, the brunette cared enough to make sure she was alright. Quinn had a feeling she was going to regret this but she decided to take the risk and started up the Berry's driveway.

Rachel didn't appear to have heard Quinn walk up behind her. She was oblivious, still digging around in her trunk for something. Not wanting to scare her, Quinn quietly said, "Hey Rachel."

Well, so much for not scaring her. At the sound of her name, Rachel jumped up with enough force to bang her head on the underside of the trunk lid. Quinn heard the thud of the impact and winced. The brunette hit her head hard enough to cause her knees to buckle and begin to give out on her. Quinn rushed up to catch her, just in time to prevent her from crashing down onto the blacktop of the driveway. She caught her around the waist and gently eased her down into a sitting position behind the car. Quinn knelt down in front of Rachel and spoke again. "Rachel? Are you ok?"

The brunette stared at her with a look of confusion plastered on her face. "Quinn? What are you doing here?" she asked.

"I was out for a run and somehow managed to end up on your street," she said. "I don't usually run on this side of town. Anyway, I recognized your house and saw you in the driveway. I came up to say hi but apparently that wasn't such a good idea, seeing as I scared the living crap out of you and made you hit your head on the trunk of your car."

Rachel winced as she reached back and gently ran her fingers across the back of her head. She hissed in pain, feeling a lump already forming. Seeing her discomfort, Quinn moved to inspect the brunette's injuries. "Here, Rachel," she said softly. "Let me take a look at it and then I'll help you inside. Ok?" Rachel gave a small nod and slowly leaned forward so the blonde could get a better look. Quinn scrutinized the affected area, assessing the extent of the injury. As she surveyed the brunette's head, she mentally berated herself. This was all her fault. She had intended on just saying hi, thanking Rachel for her concern last night and apologizing again for her behavior. Instead she gave the poor girl a concussion. Way to go Fabray.

"Well, it looks like you've got a nasty bump and there's also a small cut. It's not really bleeding but we should clean it up anyway to prevent infection," said Quinn. "How are you feeling? Are you dizzy at all? Do you think you can stand up?"

"It was just a little bump, Quinn," she stated plainly. "I'm quite capable of making my way into my home without assistance. If you would be so kind as to move out of my way, I'll grab my things from the trunk and go inside."

Rachel pushed up off the pavement and managed to almost get to a standing position before she wobbled and lost her balance. Quinn was quick to catch her again. "Woah there, tiger," she said with a slight smile. She put one arm around the brunette's waist and brought Rachel's other arm up to rest across her shoulders. "It was obviously more than a little bump and you need some help. Lemme grab your bag from the trunk. Where are your keys?"

"Quinn, really, I don't need the help. I –" Quinn cut her off. She was starting to get impatient.

"You're not really in any position to argue with me at the moment so just shut up and let me help you. Unless you'd rather sit in the driveway all night long?" she said with a smirk.

Rachel scowled at her but relented. "Fine. My keys are there on top of my bag," she said with a huff.

Quinn scooped up the bag and keys with her free hand and shut the trunk. She slung the duffel over he shoulder and tightened her grip on Rachel's waist. If the brunette lost her balance again, Quinn didn't want to go down with her. They slowly walked toward the house with most of Rachel's weight supported by the blonde. It was no surprise to Quinn that she was light, considering how short she was. As they moved together, Quinn realized this is probably the closest she's ever physically been to Rachel. The brunette let out a small groan and Quinn flushed a bit. Talk about awkward. Mortal enemies Rachel Berry and Quinn Fabray, walking pressed side by side, arms around each other. Santana would have a field day if she saw this.

They reached the door and Quinn eased Rachel over the threshold. Maneuvering her over to the living room, the blonde gently sat Rachel down on the sofa. "Where do you keep your first aid kit?" she asked. Rachel looked liked she was about to protest but before she could Quinn said, "Don't even bother arguing with me. It's my fault you whacked your head and I'm going to help you get cleaned up. Just sit there and deal with it."

Rachel heaved a sigh before she responded. "It's under the sink in the bathroom. Down the hall, first door on the right."

"Stay put," Quinn ordered. Rachel gave her a dramatic eye roll before she set off down the hall to grab the kit.

First aid kit in hand, Quinn returned to the living room. She was amazed that Rachel didn't try to get up. The little diva never took direction well. She was still on the sofa but now she was leaning forward with her head in her hands. "Alright, let's get that cut cleaned up and then we'll get some ice for that bump." Quinn rummaged in the box to find the necessary items for the task. "Are you feeling dizzy? Nauseous?"

Rachel didn't move but responded, "A little of both. It's not so bad if I lean forward like this and close my eyes."

"If that works for you, keep it up. I'm gonna start cleaning the cut so be prepared for a little sting," said Quinn. She grabbed an alcohol wipe and gently pulled Rachel's hair aside to expose the cut. The blonde could smell a light lavender scent as she did so, probably the smell of Rachel's shampoo. The brunette whimpered a little as Quinn cleaned the cut.

"Is this really necessary?" Rachel asked, somewhat perturbed. "I am quite aware of the importance of proper wound care but are you qualified to administer first aid sufficiently?"

Quinn ground her teeth. "Yes, Berry, I am," she said through her clenched teeth. "Coach Sylvester makes us take first aid classes every year so we can take care of any injuries during practice. She's been known to choose a girl at random to suffer an injury and then whips out a stop watch to time the rest of the squad on administering first aid. It's supposed to keep us on our toes."

"That's horrible!" Rachel gasped. "I honestly don't understand why that woman is allowed to continue to teach at any school. She's a horrible influence. I wouldn't be surprised if she worked for some sort of terrorist organization." Quinn couldn't help but laugh at that. Coach Sylvester did have some very controversial methods for teaching.

"Ok, all cleaned up," Quinn stated as she gently let Rachel's hair down and started cleaning up the used supplies. "I'm gonna go put this back and then I'll grab you an ice pack from the kitchen. Probably should get you a couple of ibuprofen too for the pain. Where would I find that?"

"There should be some in the medicine cabinet in the bathroom where you got the first aid kit from," she replied. Quinn got up and came back a few minutes later with a glass of water, pills and ice pack. Rachel took the pills and after a few sips, handed the glass of water back to the blonde. Quinn went to place the ice pack against the back of Rachel's head but the brunette stopped her, grabbing her wrist.

"What exactly are you doing, Quinn?"she asked. "Concussion notwithstanding, I'm a bit confused as to why you are even here in the first place."

Quinn lowered her hand but Rachel didn't release her wrist. She sighed. "Like I said before, I was out running and somehow ended up in front of your house. I saw you at your car and thought I'd come up and say hello."

"So this is a social call then?" Rachel asked sarcastically.

"No, not really. I mean, I hadn't intended on coming over but when I saw you outside I decided I should talk to you," she admitted. She braced herself for what she was about to say. Apologies were not something Quinn was well versed in. "First, I wanted to thank you for the text message you sent me last night. I know I didn't reply to it... I was too upset at the time." She gave Rachel a sad smile. The hand on her wrist gave her a gentle squeeze in understanding. "I also wanted to apologize again for hitting you. It was completely uncalled for and I'm so sorry for lashing out at you like that." She raised her eyes to meet Rachel's. "I'm not good at handling my emotions, especially in front of other people." Quinn had no idea why she was saying all this. The words were just pouring out against her will. Jeez, get a grip Fabray!

Rachel was silent for a moment as she absorbed Quinn's words. She finally released Quinn's wrist but the blonde could still feel a warmth lingering where Rachel's hand had been. "Thank you for telling me that Quinn," Rachel started. "I was genuinely concerned for you and your wellbeing after last evening's events. Despite what you may think, given our rocky past, I don't harbor any animosity toward you. Finn's behavior was deplorable and you didn't deserve what happened."

Quinn could do nothing but stare dumbfounded at the brunette as she spoke. How was it that Rachel could just let bygones be bygones and move on? She had tortured this girl for years now and here she is sitting in front of her, after Quinn physically assaulted her two days in a row, granted today's assault was an accident... But still, she's sitting here telling her how she doesn't hate her and is offering comfort. If Rachel Berry was nothing else, she was certainly an enigma. The blonde wasn't sure where to go from here. Both girls were sitting in a suffocating silence.

Quinn was the first to speak. "I don't deserve your compassion or comfort Rachel but thank you anyway." She hated to sound ungrateful but she really didn't feel the brunette owed her anything. The blonde stood up from the sofa and said, "Well, I guess I should get going. I've been out longer than I thought I would be. Mom's probably wondering where I'm at." Rachel gave her a nod and smiled. "Make sure you keep that ice pack on your head," Quinn ordered. "It's gonna hurt like a bitch but trust me, you'll be thankful you did."

"Thank you," Rachel said softly. "I'd offer to walk you to the door but I'd probably fall on my face and I'd rather not have to deal with another injury right now."

Quinn turned back and gave her a small smile. "Just stay off your feet for a while and you'll be good." She turned back to the door and was about to exit when she remembered something she wanted to ask the brunette. "Oh hey, Rachel? One last thing before I go." Rachel waited patiently for her to continue. "In your text message last night, why did you say I deserved to win prom queen?" she asked.

Rachel beamed at her and stated simply, "Because I voted for you."

Quinn had no idea what to make of that but gave a small laugh and replied, "It's nice to know I had at least one other vote." She gave Rachel one last look and then slipped out the door, shutting it quietly behind her. Replacing her earbuds, she took a few deep breaths and started back down the driveway and began her journey back home. She cranked up the music as loud as she could stand it. She'd analyze her conversation with Rachel after she got back home. For now, all she wanted was to feel the pavement under her feet and the burn in her muscles.

* * *

><p>Author's Note (again): I'm really interested in hearing your thoughts on characterization. I don't have much trouble writing Rachel's dialog, since I have a tendency to have diarrhea of the mouth like her in real life. But what about Quinn? I don't want her to be too nasty but I don't want to write her too nice either. She's dropped the name calling on the show and I've reflected that in my story. Also with the apology, I didn't want Quinn to launch into some sort of massive outpouring of how horrible she's been and apologize for everything she's ever done to her and blah, blah, blah. Right now she's apologizing for prom night, even though she is starting to think about the other shitty things she's done to Rachel. It'll be a gradual process of her taking a look at who she is and who she would like to be. Anyway, now I'm rambling like Rachel. Please take a moment to review and let me know what you think and feel free to give suggestions as to what you'd like to see happen. The story isn't already written so it could go anywhere at this point. :)<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Holy shit, this is my longest chapter yet! I hadn't intended on having time to write before my trip but I lucked out and had some free time today. I wasn't sure if I would include any Brittana with this story but it seems that Faberry and Brittana go hand in hand, lol. Still not too much progression on the Faberry front yet. I'm taking it slow for now but eventually things will pick up. I want to keep a semi-realistic timeline going. I hope I kept Santana somewhat true to character. I'm convinced that both Santana and Quinn have the capacity to be very emotional outside the realm of what we're shown on TV so I've explored that here. I forgot to mention it in a previous chapter, but I also feel like Judy has the ability to be a very caring and involved mother, which is why I've written her as I have. The previous family environment didn't allow that to happen but with Russell out of the way now, I think that with some work, she could be an excellent mom to Quinn.

Thank you to all of those who took a moment to review. It really helps to get messages of encouragement and especially feedback on my work. I'm getting tons of alerts, which is great as well, but I wouldn't mind if more of those alerts had reviews attached to them! :)

Disclaimer from chapter 1 still applies.

* * *

><p>_-**-_-**-_<br>Chapter 4  
>_-**-_-**-_<p>

Quinn arrived back home completely exhausted. On the way back from Rachel's house she pushed herself to the limit; in fact, she probably ran those six miles in record time. The conversation between the two girls didn't resolve any thoughts she had about Rachel or their interaction. Toeing her running shoes off inside the front door, she yelled to her mom that she was home and started to head upstairs for a quick shower. If nothing else, the hot water would do well to soothe her aching muscles.

She rushed up the stairs hoping to avoid a lecture from her mother on being out so long – something she never previously imagined would happen. Well, at least not because her mother cared. Quinn was beyond pleased that her mom was really making an effort to repair their relationship. She never expected things to turn out like this. In a roundabout way, getting pregnant was the best thing that happened to her. It hurt like hell to give her daughter away but she took comfort in knowing that Beth would grow up with a loving and caring mother. The blonde spent so many years with an absentee mother... she didn't want Beth to ever experience that.

Reaching the bathroom, she peeled off her clothes and turned on the shower. She had sweat so much while she was running, she tossed her clothes over a towel rack to let them air out before throwing them in the laundry hamper. That run was probably the most physical activity she'd had since she quit the Cheerios. The blonde stepped in the shower and quickly washed. She hadn't forgotten about Santana's text and needed to hurry up.

Shower finished, Quinn dressed and prepared an overnight bag. If Santana was asking her to bring ice cream with her, this would be an all night event. Gathering everything together, she went downstairs to let her mom know where she'd be. Her mother was sitting in the living room watching the news on TV. After her father had moved out, their house turned more into a home than a museum. The stuffy, antique furnishings were replaced with modern and comfy furniture. She noticed her mother had a tumbler in hand and heaved a sigh. The older blonde had significantly cut down on her drinking after her father had moved out but she still had a little something each night. Quinn poked her head in and said, "Hey mom."

Judy jumped from her seat on the couch, startled by the voice. "Oh sweetheart, I didn't know you were there!"

"Yeah, I just wanted to let you know that I'm going over to Santana's," she said. "I think she's still upset about the prom so this could turn into an all night thing. She asked me to bring ice cream," she finished with a laugh.

Judy gave a small nod and smiled at the younger blonde. "I remember when I was younger, sitting with my friends around a few pints of ice cream crying over anything and everything," she chuckled. "Have a good time and tell Santana I said hello." Quinn turned to walk to the door before her mother added, "And Quinn? If you're going to be out that long for a run, please let me know beforehand? I was starting to worry."

Quinn beamed at her mother. "Sure thing, mom. Catch you later." With that, the blonde was out the door and into her little red car. She stopped at the grocery store on the way to pick up supplies. She settled on a few pints of Cherry Garcia, Chunky Monkey and Brownie Batter ice cream. The girl at the checkout counter gave her a small smile and knowing look as she checkout out. That much ice cream just screamed "girl's night."

The blonder pulled up to the Lopez's house a short while later. Brittany's car was noticeably absent, which Quinn found to be odd. Brittany always joined in when they had a girl's night. She knew things between the two former Cheerios had been intense lately. She'd been so wrapped up in her own drama that she really hadn't been there for either of them. Hopefully she could rectify that this evening. They hadn't had a girl's night in months.

Mrs. Lopez answered the door and pulled the blonde in for a hug. "Quinn! We haven't seen you in a while!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Quinn nodded after the older woman released her from the bone crushing hug. "I know," she replied. "School has been so hectic, especially with the prom and everything..." She trailed off at the look on the woman's face.

Mrs. Lopez turned serious before she addressed Quinn. "I don't know what's happening at school with _mi hija_. She doesn't talk to me anymore," she sighed sadly. "Maybe you can get through to her. I know you girls haven't been close lately but I don't know what to do. Even Brittany hasn't been visiting as much as she used to. Santana's up in her room; you know where it is."

Quinn slipped her shoes off at the door and made her way to Santana's room. The door was closed, so she took the safe route and decided to knock before going in.

Santana yelled from within. "I told you I don't want to talk! Leave me –"

Quinn cut her off. "It's me, S!" She waited a moment before adding, "And I bought ice cream as requested." There was some muffled fumbling coming from the other side of the door before Santana reached it. She opened the door and yanked Quinn inside, briefly looked down the hallway, then shut and quickly locked the door behind her.

"What the hell, S?" she asked, with a scowl on her face. "You didn't have to drag me in here like that."

"Oh stop whining," she snapped back. "I just wanted to make sure my mom wasn't out there too. She's been trying to get me out of my room all day. It's really starting to piss me off."

The blonde set the grocery bag on the hope chest at the foot of the Latina's bed. Santana could barely contain herself as she lunged for it and grabbed the container of Cherry Garcia and a plastic spoon. Quinn watched her with wide eyes. Santana was like a madwoman possessed, opening the container and digging in straight away. "Ok, S. What's going on?" she demanded. "I've never seen you like this before. Is this about Britt?"

Santana shot her friend a dirty look and narrowed her eyes. "What if it is? It's not like you care," she spat. "You haven't been around enough to know about the kind of shit I've been dealing with."

"Seriously, S?" Quinn asked, incredulously. "You ask me to come over and then get all pissy with me like that? I've got enough of my own shit to deal with. I don't need your attitude right now." The blonde stood angrily and started for the door. Her hand was reaching for the doorknob when she heard a sob behind her. She stopped and looked behind her to see what was arguably the most pitiful sight she had ever seen. Santana was sitting cross legged on her bed, ice cream in her lap with her head hanging down and tears rolling down her cheeks. Quinn sighed heavily and turned back around to sit on Santana's bed. The Latina tried so hard to keep up her bitch exterior, rarely letting her softer side show but she had her weak moments. Even though they'd been friends since freshman year, Quinn had only seen her break down like this once or twice. It was painful to watch.

Quinn grabbed the ice cream out of her lap and pulled Santana in for a hug, sitting the carton on the nightstand next to the bed. Her friend resisted at first but then relented and grabbed onto the blonde tightly. They'd never been physically close but she was at a loss as to what to do without Brittany here. It was usually her job to comfort Santana. The Latina was now sobbing uncontrollably into Quinn's neck. Quinn felt like she was in some alternate universe. Whatever had Santana upset must be major.

"Shh..." she said quietly and ran her fingers through Santana's hair soothingly. "Slow down. Take deep breaths. I can't talk to you if you're crying like a baby." Ouch, Fabray. That probably wasn't the most sensitive thing to say. Santana started crying even harder and Quinn could feel her mumbling against her neck. She definitely made out the word "bitch," but the rest was mostly unintelligible. She caught some snippets of "...and I told Brittany...", "...Karofsky is a moron...", "...gay beards...", "...and I was so fucking stupid..."

Santana needed to get all of this out of her system. She'd been holding this in for who knows how long and now it was all coming out in a deluge of tears and previously unspoken confessions. After about 20 minutes, the Latina's cries had lessened to small whimpers. The front of Quinn's shirt was completely soaked. Luckily she had a change of clothes in her duffel bag. Finally Santana pulled back from the blonde's hold. She angrily wiped the tears from her eyes and grabbed a couple of tissues from the box on the floor next to the bed. She blew her nose a few times and then flopped back on the bed with a heavy sigh. Quinn followed her lead and laid down beside her.

"I'm pretty sure you don't have any tears left in your body," Quinn lightly joked, "so why don't you fill me in now?"

Santana lay there quietly for several minutes before she spoke. "I'm not sure where to begin, Q," she admitted honestly. "Things have been so fucked up. I'm all fucked up. I've got all this shit in my head and I don't know what to do."

"Well since you asked me to come by, I'm assuming that you want to talk about it."

"You know I don't deal with this emotional shit easily, Q. We have that in common." Quinn nodded in agreement. "But I feel like I need to be honest with someone. The only other person that gets me is Brittany and I just can't talk to her right now. And whatever I say better not leave this room or I will beat the shit out of you. I'm serious."

Quinn gave a small chuckle, "I don't doubt you on that, S. Just talk."

"So, you know how I sang 'Landslide' in glee club a few weeks ago for B." Quinn nodded and motioned for her to continue. "Well, she made me a t-shirt for the day everyone sang 'Born This Way.' It said 'Lebanese' and she asked me to wear it and dance on stage with her. She was trying to make it read 'lesbian' but you and I both know she can't spell very well. I refused to do it and I could tell it really upset her." The Latina took a deep breath and continued. "I just couldn't get on stage and announce that to everyone. You know how people at school used to treat Kurt. I know I'm a badass and all but I what if I can't handle that? I don't want the disgusted looks and whispers when I walk down the hallway." Santana let out a small sob.

Quinn felt terrible for her friend. She wished she had paid closer attention to Santana lately. She was suffering Ever since the three girls quit the Cheerios, things had been different. They weren't as inseparable as they once were. Each of the girls had gone their separate ways. Maybe that's why Quinn knew she needed to be here for Santana more than ever. Sure, she had her own drama to deal with but S never acted like this. She had to put her own problems aside and be supportive right now.

"Do you really think that would happen, S?" Quinn asked. "I doubt anyone would have the balls to talk shit about you like that. They're all afraid of the razor blades you keep in your hair." Santana turned to face Quinn and saw the smirk on her friend's face. She couldn't help but let a small smile slip out. "Besides, you know that B and I would always have your back. You'd have the glee club too."

Santana scoffed. "Oh yeah, just what I need. Berry would probably start hanging pride flags from the ceiling and make everyone go to PFLAG meetings to show solidarity or some shit."

Quinn busted out laughing. She could totally imagine Rachel doing something like that. The girl had no filter and though she usually had good intentions, she often ended up offending people and making problems worse. No, she shouldn't be thinking about Rachel right now. She needed to focus for Santana.

"While you were crying, you mentioned something about Karofsky. What was that all about?" she inquired. "And before you answer my question, I have to tell you how disgusting it is that you're hanging out with him."

"I know it's disgusting and I don't want to be doing it but I have my reasons," she replied softly.

"Then let's hear it. I already promised that whatever you said wouldn't leave this room and I meant it," the blonde repeated.

The Latina gulped audibly before she rushed out, "He's my gay beard."

Quinn couldn't quite understand what she had said, it was so rushed. "Ok, one more time and this time slowly enough so I can understand what you're saying."

"Jeez, Fabray, should I write it on a fucking flashcard for you?" she snapped. "I said he's my gay beard. We're both gay and using each other to cover it up. Was that clear enough for you to understand?" Santana turned away from Quinn to stare at the ceiling. Tears were forming in the corners of her eyes again.

Wow. Well, that wasn't what she was expecting to hear but everything made a little more sense now. I mean, why else would Santana touch Karofsky voluntarily unless she was beating the crap out of him? Understanding began to settle in. She couldn't publicly admit her feelings for Brittany so instead she used Karofsky to help cover it up. Of course, Quinn had known about Brittany and Santana's relationship for a while now. She knew the whole "sex isn't dating" thing was a load of crap. The looks Santana gave Brittany betrayed her. Santana started to speak again, bringing Quinn our of her thoughts.

"When Mr. Schuester assigned the project to sing a Fleetwood Mac song, I sang 'Songbird' to her while we were alone in the choir room. Afterward she suggested we go to prom together. She told me I could come on 'Fondue for Two' and she'd ask me and all I would have to do is agree," Santana said with a sigh. "I told her I would but chickened out at the last second and stood her up. I felt like shit for doing it but I was freaking out." Quinn heard Santana start to cry again so she reached down and lightly grasped her friend's hand. "I'm just scared that I'll fuck this up enough to lose Britt. I don't want to push her but I need her. It killed me when she was dating Artie. I screwed around and pretended I didn't care but I did. I cared so much..." Santana's voice trailed off into silence.

"I don't think you'll lose her, S. You and B have been together forever," she said comfortingly. "I can't say that I completely understand what you're going through but you have to know that you've got people who will help you through this... even if you are a bitch," Quinn finished with a smile.

Santana looked over at Quinn before she punched her in the arm. She hadn't intended on letting all this out but she couldn't stand it anymore. The only person she could talk to was Quinn. "As if you have any room to talk, bitch," she said with a smile. "God, I can't believe I got all emotional and crap. This is so not me. I swear, Britt is the only person that can make me like this. I kind of hate that about her."

Quinn chuckled. "No, you don't. You just hate to show other people you're human and capable of emotion. It totally shatters people's perception of you being a cold, unfeeling automaton," she finished.

Santana rolled her eyes at Quinn. "Alright, enough of this emotional bullshit. I want to finish my ice cream," she said.

Quinn laughed and reached for some ice cream as well. They'd have to hurry or they would end up drinking the ice cream instead of eating it. Santana's emotional outburst had taken a while to get through. Quinn grabbed the tub of Chunky Monkey and dug in. She wondered if she should talk to Santana about everything that happened with Rachel. Actually, it would probably cheer Santana up if she told her about the one-sided fight in the bathroom.

"Well, since we're all about sharing, I guess I should say something too," Quinn decided. Santana looked at her expectantly. "I slapped Rachel on prom night."

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. The spoon fell out of Santana's mouth and she burst into laughter. "No shit?" she exclaimed. "Oh God, what I wouldn't have given to see that! Why'd you slap the hobbit? I mean, other than the obvious reasons of her being meddling and annoying as hell."

Quinn sighed. "I was pissed off about the whole prom queen thing and went to the bathroom to get away. She got in my face and told me to calm down and that's when I lost it," she said. "I was actually kinda shocked that I did it. It came out of nowhere. I apologized immediately after it happened."

Santana scoffed. "I wouldn't have apologized. Bitch probably deserved it," she said. "Did she cry afterward?"

"No, she didn't. She actually said she appreciated the drama of it," finished the blonde.

"Wow. Seriously, Berry is all sorts of fucked up," she laughed. The blonde gave a small chuckle too.

Quinn felt a little guilty laughing at Rachel like this. A few months ago, that would have never been the case, but now she honestly felt guilty. She really hadn't mean to slap her, no matter how many times she had threatened to in the past. "I feel bad about doing it. Hitting her, I mean. The look on her face made me feel terrible," she admitted. "And you know what the worst part was? After I slapped her, she acted like nothing had happened and comforted me about losing the prom queen title. It made no sense at all."

"Of course not. The midget never makes sense. That's why I don't listen to half the stuff she says," said Santana. "But seriously, enough about the hobbit. Let's finish our ice cream and then watch a movie. Nothing sad though. I'm sick of all this crying shit."

Quinn nodded in agreement. They polished off all of the ice cream and popped in a comedy DVD at random from Santana's shelf. By the time the credits were rolling, both girls were fast asleep atop Santana's bed.

Quinn had a fitful night's sleep. She woke up once, breathing hard. Her dream had been fuzzy, giving her no clue as to what happened. She couldn't remember what startled her awake. She looked at the green numbers glowing from the clock on Santana's nightstand. It was 4:26am. Ugh. She stared at the ceiling until her eyelids grew heavy again and sleep overtook her.

* * *

><p><em>Rachel was up on stage, settling herself behind the microphone. Her pink dress was gorgeous, fitting her perfectly. She was beautiful. The brunette closed her eyes and breathed deeply before she opened her mouth to sing. It was the voice of an angel.<em>

_Know I can't take one more step towards you  
>'Cause all that's waiting is regret<br>And don't you know I'm not your ghost anymore?  
>You lost the love<br>I loved the most  
>I learned to live, half alive<br>And now you want me one more time_

_And who do you think you are?  
>Runnin' round leaving scars<br>Collecting your jar of hearts  
>And tearing love apart<br>You're gonna catch a cold  
>From the ice inside your soul<br>So don't come back for me  
>Who do you think you are?<em>

_It took so long just to feel alright  
>Remember how to put back the light in my eyes<br>I wish I had missed the first time that we kissed  
>'Cause you broke all your promises<br>And now you're back  
>You don't get to get me back<em>

_Who do you think you are?  
>Runnin' round leaving scars<br>Collecting your jar of hearts  
>And tearing love apart<br>You're gonna catch a cold  
>From the ice inside your soul<br>Don't come back for me  
>Don't come back at all<em>

_Who do you think you are?_

_Who do you think you are?_

_Who do you think you are?_

_Throughout the performance, Quinn watched her intently. Several times, Rachel caught her gaze and stared back. Each time she did, the blonde could see a flash pain in her eyes. She figured that Rachel was upset that Finn wasn't her date. Why else would she sing a song like that?_

* * *

><p>When Quinn woke up again, it was after 9:00am. After she looked at the clock, she lay back on the comforter and tried to remember the last dream she had. It was hazy but she could hear the tune of "Jar of Hearts" in her head. Movement on her left broke her train of thought. Santana rolled over onto her side, facing away from Quinn. She was still asleep, slightly snoring. The blonde prodded her shoulder with her finger. "Santana," she whispered. No response. Quinn prodded her a little bit harder this time. "Santana, I'm gonna head home. It's after –" Quickly, before she could even finish her sentence, Santana rolled over, grabbed the arm that was poking her and flipped Quinn off the bed.<p>

"Damn, Santana!" shrieked the blonde. "What the hell was that for?"

Santana groggily looked at Quinn. "Shit. Sorry Q. Reflex reaction."

Quinn narrowed her eyes at the Latina and got up, massaging away the pain in her elbow from the impact on the floor. "Remind me to never again share a bed with you if I'm going to be thrown on the floor in the morning. Now I know why I usually sleep on the couch or the floor," she finished with a smirk, letting her friend know she wasn't really angry with her. "Anyway, I've got to get home. Mom wanted to spend some time together today," she groaned.

"Oh, Momma Fabray wants to spend time with little Quinnie?" Santana teased.

Quinn threw a pillow at her, which Santana easily dodged. "Yeah. She wants to go to the mall and hang out. It feels so weird that she wants to do it but honestly, I'm glad," she admitted. "I finally have a mom and it's kinda nice." Quinn smiled. While hanging out with her mother all day at the Lima Mall wasn't necessarily on her list of fun things to do, it was better than sitting around the house in awkward silence. At least the mall would be a distraction and give them something to talk about.

The blonde gathered up the rest of her stuff and said goodbye to her friend. Santana had already collapsed back onto the bed and pulled the covers over her head. She passed Mr. and Mrs. Lopez on the way out. They tried to get her to stay for breakfast but she politely declined. She gave Mrs. Lopez a small hug before she left and whispered a "good luck" in her ear. Who knows what kind of mood Santana would be in today once she finally dragged herself out of bed.

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><p>Author's Note (again): This time I used the flashback as a dream sequence. The song is "Jar of Hearts" by Christina Perri, as sung by Rachel in the prom queen episode. I left the lyrics cut up like they did in the show and didn't paste the entire song. I know things are progressing slowly, so please bear with me! Don't let the Brittana put you off. This is definitely a Faberry story but I want to show a repaired relationship between the girls so Quinn has an established support system to go to when she needs it. We hardly ever see them interact on the show anymore.<p>

Also, reviews are like little rays of sunshine that light up my inbox. Don't keep me in the dark! :)


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: Finally, a chance to update! Hope everyone had a good Memorial Day weekend! After 5 states and 1,700 miles in 4 days, I was so tired I didn't have time to write until now. I pretty much write these chapters and upload them as I finish and give them a read through. I'll be going back out of town for two weeks next Wednesday but I'm hoping to get at least one more update in before then.

As far as the story goes, I'm still moving at a slow place though there is more Faberry interaction in this chapter. Please point out any spelling or grammatical errors so I can fix them. Also, I would like to get some suggestions on where you guys would like to see this story go. I'm loosely following the show's storyline through Nationals, changing things to fit a Faberry relationship, but outside of that, I am completely open to suggestions on what kinds of scenes you want to see, which characters I should bring into the story, etc. I'm not sure how much time passes between the episodes we see on TV so I'm kinda guessing on that, filling in things between the events in the episodes. Don't worry, there will eventually be some sexytimes; I just need to build up to that point. Enjoy chapter 5 and please take a few minutes to review! :)

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><p>_-**-_-**-_<br>Chapter 5  
>_-**-_-**-_<p>

The Lima Mall was surprisingly busy when Quinn and Judy had arrived. It was nothing compared to the malls in larger towns and cities but it sufficed for Lima. Once inside, the older blonde made her way straight to New York & Co. Judy was interested in buying a few new outfits and insisted her daughter do the same. Quinn hesitated before following her mother inside. She heaved a sigh and shook her head with a small smile. This was going to be a long afternoon. But, Quinn wasn't a girl to turn down free clothes. If it meant trudging from store to store with her mother in tow, then so be it.

After what seemed like an eternity, they emerged from New York & Co. to head over to Gap for Quinn. She found some cute skirts and a couple of tops to match. She really had a penchant for sundresses but was unable to find anything she liked well enough to buy. She knew her mom couldn't afford to buy too much today. After the divorce had been finalized, her mom had been left with a nice sum of money, spousal support and child support but for the first time in her life, she had to actually watch how much she spent. Before, the two blondes were accustomed to a lifestyle where prices didn't matter because nothing was too expensive for the Fabrays. Now with her father gone and mother recently starting a new job, things were a bit tighter than they once were.

Purchases in hand, Quinn and her mother left Gap and made their way toward the food court to grab some lunch. They were talking to each other, laughing about some of the horrid outfits they had seen in the stores when the younger blonde's attention was drawn elsewhere. Oh no. Oh, hell no. She knew that voice from a mile away.

Quinn abruptly stopped and turned to her mother. "Oh mom, I forgot there was something I wanted to look at in the shoe store," she rushed out. "Can we go back there right now?" She made a move to grab her mother's arm and drag her along. She wouldn't hesitate to use force if necessary to make an escape.

"Honey, can't we do that after we've had a bite to eat?" Judy asked. "We're not in any hurry and I'm starving." Quinn looked at her mother with pleading eyes but it was already too late. Shit.

"Hey Quinn!" shouted a petite brunette from across the mall. Quinn turned her head toward the direction of the voice and rolled her eyes. There was Rachel Berry, flanked by her two fathers, jumping up and down excitedly and waving. Jeez, was she freakin' everywhere? She'd spent enough time in close proximity with Rachel in the last few days to last her a lifetime.

"Isn't that one of your friends from glee, dear? The one who sang so beautifully at regionals?" Judy asked.

Quinn forced a smile and glared at Rachel, who was now rushing over to say hi. "Yes, it is," she answered through clenched teeth. This is so not happening. Is she skipping over here? Seriously?

Rachel stopped in front of Quinn nearly out of breath from her rush across the mall. "Hey Quinn! I thought that was you!" she said, beaming.

"Yeah," the blonde mumbled.

Rachel's dads finally caught up to her, smiling warmly at their daughter. Anyone could see they thought the world of their daughter. Quinn couldn't help but be jealous at that fact. Her mother was indeed working on repairing their relationship but never once did her own father look at her like that.

"It's Rachel, isn't it?" asked Judy.

"Yes! Rachel Berry. And these," she gestured to her fathers, "are my two dads, Hiram and Leroy." Both of the men offered genuine smiles and shook hands with the older blonde. "And dads, this is Judy Fabray and her daughter Quinn, who is in glee with me."

Quinn made an audible gulping sound when Rachel introduced her to her fathers. She'd never actually met them before. The blonde had only been at Rachel's house twice and her parents hadn't been home either time. Both men eyed her cautiously. Quinn wondered if Rachel had told them about all the things she had done to her over the years. The Berry men reached out toward Quinn and she almost flinched. They shook Quinn's hand in turn but Leroy held on for a moment longer and said, "We wanted to thank you Quinn for helping our baby girl the other day. She told us about her fall in the driveway. It's good to know she had someone there to take care of her." Hiram nodded, agreeing with his husband.

"It really wasn't a big deal," Quinn mumbled.

"Oh, is that why you were so late coming home from your run?" Judy asked. "You should have said something!"

"It's not that big of a deal, mom. Rachel hit her head and I helped her into the house and got her cleaned up," she finished.

"Regardless of the difficulty of the task, we still want to extend our utmost thanks to you," said Hiram, smiling warmly. Quinn let out a small snicker and tried to quickly cover it up with a cough. She now understood why Rachel speaks like a walking dictionary.

"I see you've been doing some shopping," Rachel said as she pointed to the blondes' bags. "We've been doing a little shopping as well but have yet to make any purchases. I was just telling my dads that–"

"Rachel, sweetheart, let's not bore the Fabrays with the details of our shopping. Alright?" said Leroy, resting his hand gently on Rachel's shoulder. She closed her mouth and gave a little pout before letting it go. Quinn felt like laughing, seeing the pout on Rachel's face but it was actually kinda cute. She was sure the brunette used it all the time on her fathers. They seemed like pushovers when it came to their daughter.

There was a lull in the conversation. Quinn wondered what her mother would say next. She knew that her mom knew who these men were. Sure, she had never met them in person before now, but the Berry family was always up for discussion when her father went on one of his diatribes about how gays were trying to convert innocent Christians or how people like that shouldn't be allowed to live in neighborhoods where there were other children present. So far, her mom didn't seem to be uneasy speaking with them. That was good. She didn't want to be a part of any scene in the middle of the mall.

"Hiram, Leroy," Judy began, "I believe I owe your family an apology." Oh no. Please don't let her make a scene. Please, please, please... "My ex-husband was very unkind to your family and I am so very sorry for his behavior. Actually, unkind would be an understatement. However, I was no better than him. I stood by and allowed him to say the hateful things he did." She paused for a moment as the entire Berry family looked at her, absolutely stunned. "I truly am sorry," she finished.

Quinn looked at her mother in disbelief. Was this the Twilight Zone or something? Rachel and her fathers looked just as surprised as she did. Despite her father's preaching, Quinn was never bothered by the idea of homosexuality. Her two best friends were a testament to that fact. But her mother? She had always agreed with her father when he went off on one of his rants. Quinn never for a moment thought that her mother felt differently. Well, until now, that is.

Leroy was the first to respond. "Judy, while much appreciated, there is no need to apologize on your ex-husband's behalf. The apology for your own behavior is more than enough and is gratefully accepted," he finished with a wide smile.

Hiram also chimed in. "I agree with my husband. While Russell Fabray has always done his best to make things difficult for our family, we have every understanding that it was his doing and not yours. I understand what it's like to have an overbearing presence like that in a home." He gave a small, sad smile as if he was remembering a painful memory. "Regardless, we do appreciate your apology. We believe in forgiveness. Everyone deserves a second chance, in our book."

Quinn released a breath she didn't even realize she had been holding. She was watching the Berry men throughout the entire discussion but as they finished, her eyes moved downward to meet Rachel's. She had been looking at her the entire time, she was sure of it. The blonde felt her face flush as Rachel's eyes bored into hers. The corners of Rachel's mouth twitched into a smile and she gave Quinn a wink. The blonde did a double-take. What the hell was she winking at her for?

Her mother interrupted her thoughts. "Why don't you girls go grab something at the food court so the Berrys and I can catch up a bit," she said.

"Mom, I thought you were starving. I'm sure the Berrys have– "

"Nonsense dear," Judy interrupted. "I'll grab something later. Besides, I'm sure you'd like to catch up with Rachel too. We'll meet you both in a little bit."

Quinn spluttered a bit, fumbling for a reply as to why she didn't want to go with Rachel until she felt a small hand encase her own. She looked at their intertwined hands and then up to Rachel, unable to form any words.

"Come on, Quinn," she said as she tugged the blonde toward the food court. "It won't kill you to spend some time with me. I promise not to sing any showtunes while we're together," she finished, playfully.

"Showtunes aside, you might talk me to death," the blonde quipped. "Actually, on second thought, it might be good to take you to the food court. You can't sing or talk me to death if you have food in your mouth." Quinn smirked at the offended look on the brunette's face. The blonde forgot Rachel was holding her hand until now, when she dropped it to turn away and walk toward the food court. Quinn sighed and forced herself to follow the brunette.

Neither girl was terribly hungry so they had both settled on smoothies from Orange Julius. Quinn with with the Peaches & Cream smoothie while Rachel opted for the 3-Berry Blast, made with soy milk of course. Quinn laughed when Rachel ordered it. Of course Rachel would order something berry flavored. They scanned the area for a table to sit at and found one in the corner of the food court. It was lunchtime and the place was packed with shoppers wanting to take a break. Quinn reached the empty table first and pulled out a chair to sit down. She turned to face Rachel before she sat and that's when it happened.

It was like a scene from a movie, where everything happens in slow motion. A man at a table behind Rachel pushed his chair out to stand up without paying any attention and in doing so, caused Rachel to catch her foot on the chair leg. She tripped and fell forward. The smoothie in her hand shot forward and hit Quinn square in the chest. Upon impact, the lid flew off and the ice cold drink splashed all over her shirt and up onto her face. The smoothie was followed a second later by a warm, petite body falling on top of her, causing them to both fall back into the chair Quinn had just pulled out to sit in. Seconds passed before either girl realized exactly what had happened and then Rachel scrambled to get off of Quinn as quickly as possible.

"Oh my God, Quinn!" she gasped, hand over her mouth. "I'm so sorry!"

Quinn reached her hand up to wipe away the smoothie that was about to run down her forehead and into her eyes. She was pissed. She could feel the anger inside her bubbling up to the surface. She surveyed her clothes before shooting a cold stare in Rachel's direction. "Are you kidding me Berry?" she asked incredulously. "Did you really just do that?"

"I said I was sorry!" Rachel pleaded. "It was an accident. I tripped over something. I'm so, so sorry! Please don't hit me!"

Quinn let out a snort. "I'm not going to hit you," she sighed, though the thought had crossed her mind, especially now that people were starting to gather and see what all the noise was about. "Come on. We're going to the bathroom to clean up. Now."

Quinn grabber her bags both girls started toward the restrooms which, thankfully, weren't far from the food court. The bathroom was single person only so they both had to go inside together. Once the door was locked, Quinn tossed her bags in the corner on the floor and moved to the mirror to see just how bad the damage was. She could see in the reflection that Rachel was opening her mouth to speak.

"I'm going to cut you off right now, before you even start," the blonde growled. "I don't want to hear anything about how disgusting the floor is and how I shouldn't put my bags there because I know that's what you were thinking the second I did it." Rachel let out a huff, which only proved Quinn's assessment had been correct. "Let's just get cleaned up and keep the talking to a minimum. I really don't want to have to listen to you talk right now."

Quinn's clothes were ruined. The purple color of the smoothie would never come out of her clothes. She'd have to trash them. Luckily she had those new outfits in her shopping bags. Rachel had smoothie on her as well from where she landed on top of Quinn. The blonde wasn't sure what was more embarrassing: having a smoothie dumped all over her or having Rachel Berry on top of her. She snickered inwardly as she realized that there was berry on her either way. God, she was such a dork.

Quinn grabbed a few paper towels from the dispenser and started to dab off the front of her shirt. If she was going to get those buttons undone, she needed to at least be able to grip them without her fingers sliding off. Drying them off as best as she could, she began to undo them one by one. She was just about to shrug the blouse off her shoulders when she noticed Rachel staring at her from the corner. The blonde immediately flushed and pulled her shirt closed again. She had momentarily forgotten Rachel was standing there. She usually didn't have a problem changing in front of other people; she did it all the time in the girl's locker room at school. For some reason, it felt different with the brunette standing there. She was self-conscious.

"What are you looking at?" she snapped.

"N-Nothing," the brunette squeaked. "I'm sorry. I'll just turn around and wait for you to finish." Rachel quickly turned around to face the corner. It was like she was putting herself in time out. The image made Quinn laugh to herself.

Now that the brunette wasn't staring at her, Quinn quickly shed her blouse and skirt, tossing them into the trash bin, intermittently shooting looks back at Rachel every few seconds to make sure she wasn't looking. She grabbed a new top and skirt from her shopping bag and chewed off the little plastic thread the tags were attached to. She slipped on the skirt, knee length with a blue and white floral print, and moved to the sink to clean her face off. She didn't want to put a new shirt on only to have the smoothie drip down onto it. Quinn washed and dried her face and then grabbed her new top, a simple white cotton blouse with three quarter length sleeves, slipped it on and quickly buttoned it up. Thankfully none of the smoothie had reached her hair. That would have been even more of a disaster. Once she was finished and satisfied with her appearance she said, "Alright, it's your turn now. I'm finished."

Rachel turned around to face her and it was only now that she realized how pathetic she looked. The scene looked so familiar, except this time she was covered in smoothie instead of slushy. Her ridiculous animal sweater was ruined, which Quinn considered to be a good thing, but Rachel lucked out and had only a minimal amount of the purple drink on her face and skirt. She could probably keep the skirt on but the sweater would have to be tossed out. It made Quinn wonder just how many clothes Rachel went through. She must have an endless supply of animal sweaters stored in her closets at home. With all the slushies she had endured over the past two years, the brunette had probably thrown out at least a hundred outfits. At one time that thought would have brought her great pleasure but now, standing here in the bathroom, looking at Rachel with purple crap all over her shirt and her eyes cast downward, Quinn felt remorse. She felt remorse as she thought of the one outfit she threw out, compared to the many Rachel had to. She felt remorse because she was indirectly responsible for the need to throw those outfits away. Indirectly, because while she never had actually thrown a slushy at Rachel herself, she condoned them and encouraged other Cheerios and jocks to do it.

The brunette grabbed a few paper towels from the dispenser and proceeded to scrub at the purple smoothie that was now drying on her face. Quinn watched her from the far side of the room. This situation was kinda funny, when she actually thought about it. It was so ironic, it was hilarious. She couldn't hold it in and laughter erupted from her mouth.

Rachel turned and looked at her with hurt in her eyes. Quinn immediately felt the need to explain herself. She didn't want Rachel to think she was laughing at her. "I'm sorry for laughing, Rachel. I wasn't laughing at you," she said quickly. Rachel still looked like she was on the verge of tears. "I was laughing at the irony of the situation. In a way, you just slushied me," she finished with a smile. "Never in a million years did I expect Rachel Berry to throw a frozen drink at me."

The brunette looked a little stunned at first but once she met the blonde's eyes and saw there was no malice in Quinn's statement, she began to laugh. The blonde joined in and was glad she had been able to make Rachel laugh. Quinn figured she must be starting to go soft or something. She had been downright horrible to the brunette in their freshman year. Once their sophomore year began, she continued to be a royal bitch to the girl up until she got pregnant. Her mood had changed considerably throughout the pregnancy and after Beth was born the old Quinn had never truly returned. The old Quinn would be insulting Rachel up and down right now, laughing in her face before she took a picture with her cell phone and texted it to everyone she knew. Now, she couldn't imagine doing such a thing. Something in her was changing and she had no idea what it was.

Their laughter died down and Rachel turned back toward the mirror to finish cleaning her face. Quinn knew she didn't have any extra clothes with her since she wasn't carrying any shopping bags, just a small purse. She reached down into her shopping bag and pulled out a blouse identical to the one she was wearing, except it was a delicate rose color. She again used her teeth to chew through the tag and pulled it off.

"Since you don't have another shirt to change into, you can borrow one of my new ones," Quinn said as she laid it on the counter near Rachel. "You can just get it back to me when you get a chance."

Rachel smiled at Quinn. "Thank you," she said softly. "That's very sweet of you."

Quinn blushed a little. "Well, seeing as I doubt you carry a miniature sized slushy kit in that purse, I really had no choice," she joked. "I'll turn my back so you can change." She wasn't sure how Rachel felt about changing in front of others. The blonde turned her back to Rachel to afford her some privacy, only to realize that she had a direct view of another mirror on the other wall that gave her a full view of what Rachel was doing. She really should have turned the other way but for some reason her eyes were glued to that mirror. The brunette carefully lifted the sweater over her head making sure she didn't get any of the smoothie in her hair as she pulled it off. Quinn's breath hitched once the sweater had been discarded. Underneath that horrible sweater was a beautiful sight. Rachel had gorgeously smooth, tanned skin. The blonde's eyes moved from her neck, down past the lacy black bra and settled on her stomach. She had nicely toned abs for someone who wasn't very athletic. Quinn tried to force herself to look away. This was so wrong. She was being such a pervert right now. Not only was she staring at someone half-naked without their knowledge, but this person was also a girl and none other than Rachel Berry. This was ridiculous. She shouldn't be doing this at all and she definitely shouldn't be feeling a strange sensation in her stomach because of it.

It took all of her self-control but she finally pried her eyes from the mirror and cleared her throat lightly. "Are you almost done Rachel?"

"I'm finished. You can turn around now," she replied.

Quinn turned back around and did her best to not look guilty for what she had just been doing. She didn't meet Rachel's gaze but bent down to pick up her bags and started for the bathroom door. "We should get going. I'm sure our parents are finished talking and are looking for us by now."

"You're probably right," agreed the brunette. "I'm just going to try and scrub a little bit more of this off my skirt and use the restroom. I'll be right out."

"Yeah, sure. See you in a few." Quinn exited the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She heard Rachel turn the lock and practically collapsed against the wall on the opposite side of the hallway from the bathroom. She was so focused on getting out of there, she never saw the smirk on Rachel's face as she closed the door.

A few minutes later, both girls were ready to go and immediately met their parents in the food court. Judy commented on the fact that the girls were wearing different clothes than when they last saw each other, which of course caused Rachel to launch into a detailed account of what happened. Quinn remained quiet throughout the whole exchange, opting to let Rachel tell the story. She sat there and observed the group of them. The Fabrays and the Berrys sitting down having lunch together? This still felt like something out of the Twilight Zone.

After their meal, the two families parted ways. Judy and Quinn arrived home, dropped their bags on the coffee table in the living room and collapsed on the sofa straight away. It had been a busy day for both of them.

"Thank you for spending time with me today, Quinn," her mother said softly.

Quinn leaned her head on her mother's shoulder and smiled. "I had a good time, Mom. Thanks for taking me." And it was true. Despite the whole smoothie incident, Quinn really did enjoy herself. Spending time with her mom wasn't as bad as she thought it would be and Rachel turned out to be tolerable as well, all things considered. Rachel's dads ended up being pretty cool and her mom liked them as well. But the whole bathroom thing though was confusing as hell. All Quinn knew was that she had to figure this out, whatever it was, and get a grip on it. Her life was beginning to turn upside down and she wasn't sure what to make of it. The only thing she did know for sure was that Rachel Berry was the cause of it.


End file.
